Crossing Paths
by HawkenWulf
Summary: A chance encounter at a bar, a glimpse at what might be.


CROSSED PATHS

**CROSSED PATHS**

David sat at the bar, waiting for Millie to arrive, when the stranger in the gray coat came up and picked the stool beside him. The man ordered a Red Riesling. He took a sip from his glass and smiled. "Satisfactory," he pronounced.

David took note of his choice. "That's rare," he remarked. "I don't see too many people ordering one of those."

"You might say it's an acquired taste," the man replied. "Normally I don't drink but I heard this bar has this particular variation so I decided to visit."

"This is probably the best bar in this city," David said. "And Terry is the best bartender I've ever had the privilege of knowing." He raised his glass to the bartender, who only nodded and smiled at his compliment.

"I'll keep that in mind," the man said. "I'll come back here tomorrow night, perhaps."

David nodded. "Are you a guest at the hotel?"

The man drained his glass and signaled the bartender for a refill. "Unfortunately, I'm only here on a short business trip. I never get to stay anywhere for very long."

David chuckled softly. "I know what that's like." _More than you could know,_ he added silently.

The bartender poured the man another glass. He thanked him and then said: "A refill for my companion here, whatever he's having."

"Thank you," David said. "My name's Chris, by the way." He extended his hand. The other man took it, saying, "I'm Victor Primo. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, Chris."

"Likewise, Victor." David took a drink and then checked his watch. Millie was probably on her way but, just to be sure, he excused himself to call her on his mobile phone. A few minutes later, he put his phone away.

"Waiting for a date, Chris?" Victor asked.

"Yeah," David replied. "She's on her way. Women are like that, I guess."

"I take it she's your girlfriend," Victor said.

David answered carefully: "We're very good friends, you might say."

"I know what that's like," Victor commented. "It's hard to settle down sometimes when you've got so many things coming and going. And when you move around a lot, it gets even harder." Then he eyed David evenly. "Isn't that right…_David?_"

David's hand gripped his glass tightly but, otherwise, he kept himself in control. "I'm sorry—my name is Chris—"

"Chris Walker," Victor finished his sentence for him. "Or should I call you David Rice instead?"

David began to Jump; it took him a few minutes to realize that he wasn't going anywhere. He realized that Victor was somehow blocking his power. Lacking few other options, he tried a more direct approach: he tried to punch Victor, hoping to distract him long enough to run out of the bar. That tactic, however, didn't work, either. Victor easily moved out of his fist's way. Then he took hold of David's wrist with a grip that seemed to paralyze him completely.

Several minutes later, David woke up to the sight of Victor watching him as he lay on a hard, irregular surface. He got up gingerly, checking himself for any injuries.

"You can relax, Mr. Rice," Victor told him. "You've been mostly unharmed by our little trip."

David got to his feet and nearly bumped his head on something. That was when he realized that they were in a cave. He calculated the distance from where he stood to the cave's entrance.

"I wouldn't try that, Mr. Rice," Victor suggested, as if he could read David's mind. "I said you were mostly unharmed. If you attempt to Jump from where we are, your remains will have to be collected with a blotter."

"Who are you?" David demanded. "If you've hurt Millie, I'll—"

"Choke me to death?" Victor interjected with a sarcastic smile. "She's all right, Mr. Rice. In fact, she's still inside her taxi, stuck in traffic on the Westside Bridge. If you calm yourself, you'll be back in time to meet her for dinner."

"Look, why don't you tell me what this is all about?" David said, trying to hold in his fear and anger. "Who are you, anyway?"

Victor motioned for him to sit down as he spoke. "As I told you, my name is Victor Primo, Mr. Rice. I must admit, this is quite an occasion for me to meet you. I've been watching your career with great interest."

"Why?" David wanted to know. "Are you one of the Paladins?"

"No," Victor replied. "I am a guardian, much like they were supposed to be in the beginning. But now, they've lost sight of their purpose. They've ceased to be guardians."

"Tell me about it," David said. "I nearly got killed by an entire team of them. This one guy in particular, Roland—he really wanted to kill me and everyone like me."

"Roland's like that," Victor pointed out. "It's in his nature, really. But you didn't kill him when you had the chance, did you?"

"No," David admitted. "I couldn't kill him. I guess…I'm not made that way."

"I suppose not." Victor stood up and went to the mouth of the cave. A few moments later, David joined him and saw that the cave was actually high up on a mountainside. For a moment, he thought of what Victor said when he was considering a run for it. Just looking at the drop from where they stood made him dizzier than his first Jump. A shudder ran through him at the thought of his body striking the rocks below.

Victor noticed his reaction. "Afraid of heights, Mr. Rice?" he joked.

"No, just cold," David retorted. He put his hands in his jacket pockets. "Where are we anyway? This looks like a desert."

"Tell Atlas," Victor said. "Tunisia. You've never been here, have you?"

"Can't say that I have," David admitted. "But I would've picked an easier way to get here."

Victor shrugged. "Sorry about that. But sometimes I need to put traveling companions in stasis when I'm not sure how they would react to teleporting."

"You can Jump?"

"After a fashion, you might say. It's plain teleportation but it does take plenty of practice and strength. After a while, given the proper preparation and conditioning, you can even Jump to other places in space. And I mean space as in out there." He gestured towards the stars above. "And you can also travel to other points in time."

"What? That's…that's impossible," David said. "I find that hard to believe."

"That's why you'd fail if you tried it now," Victor told him. "But I think you've got it in you to be the most powerful Jumper I've ever seen." Then he shrugged. "Of course, it _could_ also turn you bad, like Roland said. Imagine having so much power that you could go anyplace and anytime. You could change the world that way."

David thought about it. What Victor was saying was true. The ability to Jump to other worlds and other times…he wondered what that would be like. To be able to go back in time…and maybe fix things…make them right…

"Tempting, isn't it?" Victor said, startling him out of his reverie. "Your power is strong, Mr. Rice. Your experiences have helped build your power and the experiences yet to come will build your power even further."

He turned around and David saw that his right hand had turned into a greenish-blue shaft of light. "Roland was right, you know. Jumpers _can_ turn bad. They think that they can do anything and then flee the consequences of their actions." He stepped closer to David and raised the weapon that flared from his hand. "You should know that better than most, Mr. Rice. You used to think that way. And even though you've proven that you know better than to misuse your power, there's still so much fear in you…so much anger…and so much hate."

"What? That's not true," David protested. "What are you talking about?"

"You know very well what I'm talking about, Mr. Rice," Victor said and pointed the tip of his weapon at him. David realized that he'd been backed up against the rear of the cave and that he had no escape. He still couldn't Jump. Victor's weapon inched closer.

"Are you going to kill me?" David asked.

"If I were Roland, I would certainly want to—but I'm not." The weapon disappeared. "But let me tell you this: when you discover just how powerful you are, there will come a time when you feel like there isn't anything that you can't do," Victor told him evenly. "And then there will come a time as well when you realize that no matter how far you Jump, there are still certain things you can't do. That even the ability to travel to other times and places still won't keep certain things from happening. Your own death, for one, or the death of a loved one—those are things that you might be able to delay but you can't stop it. And then you'll realize that for all that you can do with your power, you can't use it to save yourself or everyone you love all the time. You cannot flee the inevitable."

"Why are you telling me this?" David wanted to know.

Victor didn't reply at first. And then, finally, he said: "I suppose you're old enough and smart enough that I don't have to remind you that when you Jump, sometimes you risk Falling into the dark, maybe forever. Or until someone comes to show you the way back to the light." He turned away and walked towards the entrance of the cave.

"Look, Victor, or whoever you are," David said, catching up to him, "I'm not afraid of my power, if that's what you're thinking."

"Not now," Victor said. "But one day, you will be." He looked out at the night sky, as if pondering the distance across the stars…or, perhaps, the distance between falls…or fates. "It's time for us to go back, Mr. Rice. I've held time in stasis for long enough."

"You can do that?" David asked wonderingly. "All those things that you told me I could do—you can do it too?"

Victor nodded. "When you reach nine hundred years, you learn a few things along the way."

"Nine hundred—?" David looked at him in disbelief. "You can't be nine hundred years old."

Victor shrugged. "I don't look that old, do I? In that, I suppose I'm lucky. What we do takes a lot out of us. And we don't have anything except what we carry with us." He reached out, seemingly touching the air in front of him. A portal seemed to open right before them. "After you, if you please, Mr. Rice."

David stepped into the portal and Victor followed him. In a matter of seconds, they were back at the bar. Victor took out a few bills and put them under his glass. "This is goodbye for now, Mr. Rice," he said. "Hopefully, our paths will cross again."

David nodded. "It's been interesting talking to you, if nothing else."

Victor arched an eyebrow slightly but made no comment in response. He simply left the bar—just as Millie walked in, with a smile on her face.

"Hello, Davy," she greeted him. "Looks like I'm early for a change, huh?"

David looked at his watch. She'd arrived at eight o' clock, right on time. He looked at her and smiled. "Looks like it, all right. Come on—I got us a quiet little booth." He gave her a kiss on the cheek, thought better of it, and gave her a kiss on the lips, holding her gently yet close to him at the same time.

"Wow," Millie said. "What was that for?"

"Just to let you know that there's no place I'd rather be than with you," David said, "and that there's no time more precious to me than when we're together."

Victor watched the couple through the window looking out onto the street in front of the hotel where the bar was located. He'd heard David's words echo through the time stream. Everything was right—for now. Down the road, he knew things could change. David's love for Millie might eventually lead to his downfall. But as a teacher of his once told him, sometimes it was best to keep yourself focused on the here and now instead of letting your mind fly too far into the future. When the time came, he would deal with David, if it became necessary. Such was the price of the safeguarding the world and all worlds in the river of time and space.

With that, he left, his gray coat blowing slightly in the night breeze.


End file.
